Robber Shoots Bar Patron During $200 Heist

WILTON MANORS — A bar patron was critically injured early Wednesday after he was shot while fighting a robber, police said.

Police think the culprits are part of a band of robbers who have been targeting local taverns for months, said Wilton Manors police Sgt. Pete Bigelsen.

According to police:

About 1:30 a.m., two gunmen walked into Red's Bar, 2610 N. Dixie Highway, and ordered patrons to turn over their wallets and purses. One of the patrons, Michael Lee Maguire, resisted, grabbed a barstool and used it to push one of the gunmen against the wall. The gunman shot Maguire, 38, twice, once in the mouth and once in the shoulder. After the shooting, the robbers fled in a 1978 brown Cadillac. They made off with about $200.

Maguire ran outside, flagged down a motorist and was taken to Broward General Medical Center, where he was in critical condition.

Bigelsen said about a half-dozen area taverns have experienced similar robberies in recent months.

The other bars robbed in the same manner are: the Sportsman's Lounge in Dania, the Island City Lounge in Wilton Manors, Clover Bar in Oakland Park, Freddie's Anchor Inn and Sports Bar in Fort Lauderdale, and the Oasis Lounge and Panama Pete's Bar, both in Tamarac. All were hit in October.

The gunmen in Wednesday's robbery are described as black males. One is in his early 20s, has a stocky build, is 5 feet 7 inches tall and 175 pounds. He has a mustache, gold teeth, wore an orange or red jacket and long denim shorts. The second man is in his early 20s, wore a white T-shirt and an orange ski mask.

Their car had primer gray paint on the roof, trunk and rear fenders. There was masking tape on the passenger-side parking light and a red Christmas ribbon on the grille.

Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call Wilton Manors police at 954-390-2162 or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.